All We Love We Leave Behind
Reviewed by:
UG Team, on october 11, 2012 4 of 4 people found this review helpful

Sound: Converge always have a lot to prove. Their seminal "Jane Doe" in 2001 set a high benchmark for the hardcore scene, combining kinetic punk with the fury of metal to make one of the heaviest albums ever committed to tape. But one decade and three albums later, "Jane Doe" still looms like a vulture - seemingly impossible to improve on and too emotionally driven to compete with. Can "All We Love..." finally pull them from Jane's shadow and make history in its own right?
Kurt Ballou is more than just a guitarist to Converge. He's established himself as one of the most respected recording engineers in metal, arming himself with credits for Cave In, Ghenghis Tron, Isis and dozens more. Who better to produce a Converge album?
Their unpredictable live style is captured perfectly, yet evades all cliques of cold metal precision. Ballou has described their sound as "a bunch of hardcore kids playing leftover Slayer riffs," but this album draws plenty from thrash, punk and grindcore. It can be distracting if you're not wild on one style, but the structures are chaotic enough to keep your attention throughout.
Highlights are "Tender Abuse" for its sheer energy followed by "Sadness Comes Home" for the accessible yet immensely cool riffage. "Glacial Pace" is the emotional centerpiece, where Ballou's guitar doesn't gently weep as much as bellow from a tar pit, begging to escape. Compelling stuff indeed. // 10

Lyrics: Jacob Bannon is technically the frontman, but his grating vocals are so revered by fans that I wonder if the band hold him back just to blow you away with 'the good bits'. Bassist Nate Newton fronts several tracks with angst-ridden ranting, though Bannon remains the star. Legends say he can destroy speakers with a breath, and from the samples below you wouldn't doubt it.
There's little use in reprinting Bannon's lyrics because barely anything on the record is intelligible, but here's a clip from "Glacial Pace" to get a sense of his poetic integrity: "My love, wrap your hands around my heart / Free me from the front that enveloped my life / My love, reach out your arms and pull me close / Let us tread in silence / As their world drowns beneath us". Lovely, but you wouldn't know it. // 8

Overall Impression: For anyone who likes their recordings raw and loud, this is an essential release. And yet, it's hard to give the album too much credit. At 14 tracks it feels like two songs too many, with some weaker tracks (which are still pretty good) sounding like filler in comparison to the highlights. Technically the band sound better than ever, but the latter half suffers from poor pacing and suggests Converge could do better.
Still, this is a monumental release. "All We Love..." might be punctured, but moments on this record set a precedent for this decade just as "Jane Doe" did in the 2000s. Quite an achievement for anyone, let alone Converge.
Hear "Sadness Comes Home" and "Glacial Pace" here:

All We Love We Leave Behind
Reviewed by:
wbjackson517, on january 30, 2013 0 of 0 people found this review helpful

Sound: This is my first experience with Converge. I have heard for years that Converge are the pioneers of metalcore. This is not the metalcore in the current form we know tight now. Bands like As I Lay Dying, Whitechapel or Parkway Drive are drivel compared to what Converge are doing. They meld true metal with awesome hardcore music. "All We Love We Leave Behind" is a true masterpiece. I have spun this about a hundred times. I cannot believe it took me so long to get into these guys. Of course they are from Massachusetts. What metalcore band worth anything isn't? I bought this and then discovered that this made everyone's top pick for album of the year. So of course now I have to go get the rest of their catalog, including "Jane Doe". I really like this album and Converge have definitely become more than a blip on my radar. Excellent album. // 10

Lyrics: My overall impression of the lyrics surely seem to fit the title. Songs like Empty On The Inside show that possibly Jacob is realizing the immortality of youth is slowly fading away... "Empty on the inside... Hunting-for all my life... What made me whole is slipping through my hands... Youth leaves us all as this death commands". Which I feel fits the title perfectly. Jacob Bannon is definitely getting it in on this album. Reading the lyrics and listening to him scream - I get it. Mad about getting older. Actually the music and the singing compliment each other perfectly. // 10

Overall Impression: Any artist you could compare them too are most likely influenced by Converge. Kurt Ballou's guitar playing is top notch. The rhythm section of Ben and Nate might be favorite ever. "Aimless Arrow", "Vicious Muse", and "Coral Blue" are just a few of the impressive songs. But the album as a whole is killer. I could do without "Precipice" but it is still alright. If it were lost or stolen I would definitely buy it again. And I will buy the rest of their catalog as well. Converge have completely shown why they have staying power and why every album they put out makes the top of everyone's year end list. // 10

Converge is one of my most favourite bands - after listening once "You Fail Me" album (it's one of my all-time favorites ever, and for me, it's Converge's best record and much better than "Jane Doe").
And when I first listened "Aimless Arrow", I think that it was angry as always, but enough boring for me - I wasn't impressed.
So, when I first listened to "All We Love We Leave Behind" album, I have the same feelings - it lasted for the first three opening tracks - but then album begins to grow up - and now I really impressed with their last work. For me, the greatest tracks are "Sparrow's Fall", "Empty On The Inside" and especially "Glacial Pace" - just amazing track!
So, another great emotional record from Converge!

All I love is this record. I checked out the stream a couple of times and I'm definitely getting this.
I wouldn't say that they are that "heavy". Depends on your definition of heavy I guess, to me these guys are just chaos embodied.

I can't wait to hear this! I've been a Converge fan since around '95 (got to play some shows with them in the 90's) and always thought that "Jane Doe" was their best but I hear good things about this record.

After listening non-stop to this album for about a whole week I can honestly say this is one of their best albums they've made so far, also one of my favourite albums of the year, definitely in my top 3 best albums of 2012!

I never understood why people didn't like Aimless Arrow, it's one of my favorite tracks on the record. Now I'm quite a big Converge fan, but I didn't think I would love this album as much as I did since I really don't love ATF as much as I do Jane Doe or You Fail Me, but man AWLWLB is right up there with those two for me.